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Book Review: Born Into it by Jay Baruchel |
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This book is probably amongst the most readable books I've ever had the pleasure of owning. It drags you in and only let's you out once you've read the last line. That's a bit strange considering it's not a thriller or a big mystery novel but really just the story of a Canadian boy and his life as a Montreal Canadiens fan. Sure, Baruchel is also a celebrity (actor and script writer, most of you are probably familiar with his movie Goon) but the book doesn't say that much about his career. I believe it works so well for one reason and one reason only; its reminiscing power. As you flip pages after pages and learn what life was like for Baruchel as a Tricolore fan, you cannot hep but draw parallels with your own life, how you became a fan, how that followed you everywhere, how you came to meet friends who were as passionate as you were about the team and even how you introduced others to the Montreal Canadiens as a religion.
Like many, Baruchel joined the church of the Montreal Canadiens through his dad. He started watching them because his dad loved them but that's also why, at one point, he stopped watching. He recalls that as a teenager, he basically lost touch with his dad and sided with his mother in their separation. He felt so alienated with his father that he even turned his back on him hockey team at the worst possible time. In 1993, while you and me were euphoric because our hockey team had just won its latest Stanley Cup and we had a great time celebrating, Baruchel was missing out because he was basically a teenager who couldn't stand his dad anymore.
In another chapter, he explains what it was like to live in Leafs' territory as a kid. Going to school being the only one wearing Canadiens gear and putting up with the other kids' teasing. As someone who grew up in Lévis, on the south shore of Québec, I can totally relate. I wasn't in Leafs territory but I was right in the middle of Nordiques nation, even at home, everyone supported Statsny and co.
Further along in the book, he discusses his move to Los Angeles and it really reminded me of my 8 years in London, watching the playoffs games alone between midnight and 3 or 4 AM and feeling quite isolated because I had no one to share the experience with...until I wore my Habs jersey to work one day and met a fellow Habs fan (another Quebecer in exile) on the tube. From then on, I had a viewing partner and it made that 2010 playoffs run so much more fun!
My favorite chapter though is probably the one where he explains coming home and finding a place where he really belongs and he has his very own viewing traditions. Unlike him, I'm not a fan of marijuana so I can't really relate to the smoking pot to calm down anecdotes. However, he describes the stress that the game involves for a group pretty darn well and I could definitely see myself and my friends in his own words.
You won't learn anything about the Canadiens by reading this book but if you are a die hard fan, it will speak to you for sure. Be ready to take a walk down memory lane and realize just how many moments in your life are related to hockey, how many great memories it has given you but how much pain it has caused also because that's what the day-to-day life of a fan is like, a succession of highs and lows...
Oh, and if you are so inclined, feel free to share some of your own fan memories in the comments...
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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